The Small Business Administration made it official this morning: the bipartisan Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) has exhausted the funds originally legislated, capping at $350 billion.
The SBA has officially exhausted the funds available for its emergency small business lending program: pic.twitter.com/kESMMvBexn
— Phil Mattingly (@Phil_Mattingly) April 16, 2020
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and House Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) pleaded with Democrats to stop blocking additional funding for the program, which only hurts small businesses in need of relief.
Millions more Americans are losing their jobs every week. Absolutely crushing.
— Leader McConnell (@senatemajldr) April 16, 2020
Republicans have spent a week trying to fund the bipartisan Paycheck Protection Program so more Americans can keep their jobs.
Democrats are blocking the money and making the program run dry. https://t.co/TvdkUkRkOU
"By the time we are done with this interview we may be out of money," says @GOPLeader on deploying loans to small businesses. "Add more money to it so people stay employed." pic.twitter.com/LAAhKpNJOT
— Squawk Box (@SquawkCNBC) April 16, 2020
McConnell / McCarthy on lapse in small business funding:
— Doug Andres (@DougAndres) April 16, 2020
“This did not have to happen...Last Thursday, Senate Republicans tried to pass a narrow and clean bill that would have simply put more money into this critical program...Democrats blocked it.”
In opposition to Republicans' push to legislate more funding, Speaker Pelosi claimed that there is no data proving that PPP would need more funding, despite the Small Business Administration's warning:
Nancy Pelosi on opposing more small business coronavirus relief: “no data as to why we need it”https://t.co/Pv5WO83juJ pic.twitter.com/XJwwEdisBo
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) April 9, 2020
Democrats have refused additional funding for unless their list of unrelated demands is met. Republicans proposed a clean bill of an additional $250 billion in funding for the bipartisan program, with no ideological strings attached, but Democrats torpedoed the GOP effort.
Until PPP funding is renewed, Americans in the small business sector will continue to face financial hardship due to economic repercussions of COVID-19, while Democrats continue to hold funding hostage, and use relief bills to further their ideological agenda.
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